50 First Dates
by mrsspookylovesbaseball
Summary: Mulder and Scully's relationship over the course of the series told through the 50 first dates they didn't know they went on.
1. Pilot - Mud, Rain, and Elton John

_Mulder and Scully's relationship over the course of the series told through the 50 first dates they didn't know they went on._

* * *

_**1\. Pilot - Mud, Rain, and Elton John**_

The rain was not letting up. Scully felt like it was pounding her down into the slick mud, like a hammer to nail, as they stood in the middle of the Bellefleur Cemetery yet again. She really shouldn't have been surprised, she was quickly learning that an assignment on the X Files, no, rather an assignment to work with Special Agent Fox Mulder was unlike anything she had ever done before. X's spray-painted onto wooded roads, strange (one could even say _alien_) bodies discovered, foreign metal implants, and now missing gravesites. All in a day's work for what would become her new normal.

She didn't know what to do with the jumble of emotions she was feeling. She couldn't help herself from laughing, shouting, and crying tears of incredulity as she stood there, out in the cold, continuing to get drenched with her new partner.

"I'm not making this up, this fits the profile of alien abduction."

"This fits a profile?" She couldn't believe she was actually standing here considering what her partner was saying. Everything that had happened since they landed in Oregon was frankly crazy. And yet… it didn't seem so to Mulder. He seemed to have an explanation for everything, granted not very orthodox explanations, but explanations nonetheless. And that was more than she had. Her head was spinning as she tried to follow what he was telling her - about Peggy O'Dell, the forest, a genetic mutation in that godawful body she had to exhume.

"And the force, summoned Theresa Nemman's body into the woods tonight." _Right..._

"Yes, but it was _Billy Miles_ who took her there, summoned by some alien impulse. That's it!" She admired the passion she saw in Mulder's eyes.

She was laughing hysterically. _This cannot actually be making sense to you, Dana..._

"Come on, let's get out of here."

"Where are we going?" she asked, quickly realizing she didn't actually care for Mulder's answer. She was going wherever her crackpot, albeit genius partner was leading her to.

She felt like she was floating on her feet. Maybe it was the exhaustion, maybe it was how cold she was, but euphoria rushed through her veins as they buckled themselves up in the car. Mulder noticed his partner shivering, her normally bright pink lips twinged in a pale blue. He turned the heat up all the way as they began to drive back to the motel.

She leaned over to turn on the radio, Elton John's "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" blared through the stereo speakers. She laughed again.

"What?" Mulder glanced at her with an amused smile. He hadn't known Scully for a long time, but he sensed she wasn't one to be giggly all the time. He didn't realize he was cherishing the moment.

"I just love this song!" She chuckled, smiling brightly and nodding along to the music.

Mulder reached over and turned the volume knob up higher. And much to Scully's surprise, he started singing along. He looked at her as she stared at him, mouth slightly agape. "What? I love this song too."

Maybe she truly was exhausted and going crazy. Maybe it was a strangeness in the way his smile lit up a deep warmth inside her chest. Or maybe it was that at that moment she really couldn't care less. So, Scully let out one last belly laugh and sang along too.

_Ooh Ooh_

_Nobody knows it_

_When I was down_

_I was your clown_

_Ooh Ooh_

_Nobody knows it, nobody knows it_

_But right from the start_

_I gave you my heart_

_Oh  
I gave you my heart_


	2. Squeeze - Do You Think I'm Spooky?

**2\. Squeeze - Do You Think I'm Spooky?**

"_Dana, if I can break a case like this one, I'll be getting my bump up the ladder. And you, maybe you won't have to be Mrs. Spooky anymore."_

Tom Colton was a dick. Scully was still seething from their earlier conversation. '_Mrs. Spooky' my ass. _She knew she shouldn't let it get to her, but his words and his arrogance bothered her to no end. It bothered her that she couldn't stop thinking about it, that she was wasting her time and energy on him.

The subsequent conversation she had with Mulder wasn't helping much either. His question still ringing in her head.

"_Mulder, look. Colton plays by the book and you don't. They feel your methods, your theories are..."_

"_Spooky? Do you think I'm spooky?" _The look he gave her shook her more than she expected.

She knew what it felt like to have a nickname hanging over your head. One that defined everything about you to those around you, and especially to those who didn't even know you. _Ice Queen_. She lived years with that hanging over her head, until she decided to own it instead of shying away from the insult. So, she made sure was the smartest, toughest, hardest working recruit at the Academy. And frankly, there weren't many people there she cared to know or even cared to care about.

And now, here she was. _Mrs. Spooky_ \- attacked by some liver-eating psycho mutant in her own apartment. Thankful to no one but _Mr. Spooky_ at this very moment, for coming over to check on her and arriving just in time to help her take down Tooms.

"Hey, do you want to step out for a bit?" Mulder leaned over, practically whispering in her ear. She had noticed that he had this habit of getting really close, invading her personal space when they talked. Not always, but most of the time. And for whatever reason, she didn't mind.

She nodded and followed him out the door.

They sat outside her apartment building, near the street curb. Scully _had_ wanted to get some air and really just wanted to get outside of her apartment for a bit before having to deal with the mess Tooms' attack had made. The air was still. It was a quiet night. Neither of them had said much since they sat down, both processing everything that had just happened over the past few days.

Scully had been mulling something over in her head. "I don't, you know..." she said quietly, breaking the silence suddenly.

"Hm?" Mulder asked, feeling a brief flash of panic at the thought that maybe Scully had gotten a concussion in their scuffle with Tooms. He turned to look at her closely, but she seemed fine. She wasn't badly hurt.

"Think you're spooky, I mean." She smiled shyly. "I don't think you're spooky, Mulder." She looked him straight in the eye with those big blue eyes, conviction and certitude shining through to him.

He couldn't help smile, momentarily unsure of what to say. They had really only known each other for a few weeks, but he was finding that in these moments, where it seemed to him that they were the only two people left in the universe, froze him in place. And he knew that he'd never felt that before. Not with a colleague, not with a friend (though he didn't have many of those hanging around), and certainly not with any of his past lovers. _Lovers? Why was he thinking about lovers?_

Realizing that it had been a good minute that he had been staring at her, he shook his head and chuckled. Leaning over to bump her with his shoulder softly, he purposefully sounded sullen. "But Scully, that means that you won't get to be _Mrs. Spooky."_

She giggled and looked away, her stomach fluttering. "Ha. Ha. You're right. That would be devastating," she replied in a playful tone, as she nudged him back.

"All the things we could have been…" he laughed, leaning his head back and looking up at the dark sky. You couldn't really see the stars clearly, the lights of the city drowned them out.

They sat out there for another half an hour in contemplative silence, just enjoying each other's company. Eventually, Scully yawned and Mulder took that as a sign to head home. He walked her back to her apartment and stopped at her door. After Mulder wished her goodnight and had left, she still stood under the threshold staring down at the empty hallway, lost in thought.

_Maybe not being Mrs. Spooky is a bit devastating after all_, she thought to herself wistfully.


	3. Jersey Devil - Nights at the Smithsonian

**3\. Jersey Devil - Nights at the Smithsonian**

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going with you to the Smithsonian." Scully just kept surprising him.

"Don't you have a life, Scully?" Mulder would be lying if he said he wasn't happy to have her come along.

"Keep that up Mulder and I'll hurt you like that beast woman." She retorted, reaching for the door. He knew she meant it.

"Eight million years out of Africa..."

"Look who's holding the door."

They ended up speaking with the ethnobiologist at the Smithsonian for much longer than they expected. The Natural History Museum, which they had ended up walking over to at the behest of the scientist, was closing in an hour. Mulder figured there was no use going back to the office and sitting through traffic during rush hour, so he suggested staying and looking around a bit.

"C'mon Scully, when was the last time you spent time at a museum for fun?"

"That's assuming I come to museums for fun, Mulder." She retorted. He shot her a look. "Yeah, yeah, okay I do. Fine, it _has_ been a while. But if we stay, you're buying me dinner afterward. I'm getting hungry." It wasn't like she had Ethan waiting for her to get home anymore.

Mulder couldn't help but smile and shrug. "Fair deal." He had to admit, he was happy to spend the extra time with his partner outside of work. It felt as though they already knew so much about each other. They clicked. But, curious as ever, he wanted to know more.

Passing the big elephant display, they walked over to the Hall of Mammals. Scully had always liked exhibits like this since she was a child. As she looked at the display cases, she thought back to Sunday afternoons spent chasing after her brothers in the museums. Melissa was content to sit with her mother looking at the gem collections or butterfly gardens, so she always tagged along with Bill Jr. and Charlie to hear their father's lectures about all the animals and prehistoric peoples that were up in the displays. At such a young age, she believed Ahab truly knew something about everything. And didn't want to miss a single tidbit.

"Oh look Mulder, a red _fox_! Your brethren!" She smiled wickedly at her partner, who had just walked up to stand behind her. She could feel him standing close.

"Ha. Ha. Like I've never gotten that one before."

She spun around to face him, taking in how close they were actually standing. "I mean, they are very cute." There was a twinkle in her eye.

He rolled his eyes, but couldn't help feeling that she wasn't just talking about the fox in the display. It was something in the way she said it. Something in the way she looked at him. He tried not to dwell on it, it couldn't possibly mean anything more than a subtle tease. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted an adorably small creature perched on a tree branch, with the biggest eyes he'd ever seen.

He grabbed Scully's hand and pulled her over to the next display case."Oh, look a... bushbaby!" he said, reading the plaque. He added excitedly, "_Your_ brethren Scully!"

"Mulder, I really will hurt you like that beast woman, I swear to god," she responded as she saw what he was referring to. She was not going to admit that the furry animal was rather cute.

"But Scully… look at its precious big eyes and look how tiny it is! Makes you wanna just put him in your pocket!"

"Mulder…" Scully drew out the "r" at the end of his name in frustration. He had such a goofy smile plastered across his face she felt like he was testing her. "If you're really trying to stand here and compare me to a-"

"Scully!" He interrupted her. "I'm not trying to compare you…" She raised an eyebrow when he paused, seemingly searching for his next words."Besides," he let go of her hand and started walking towards the door. "You're much cuter than that thing."

Scully was momentarily stunned as she felt a flush creep up her neck and her cheeks. She snapped out of it quickly enough to run to catch up to Mulder, who was waiting for her by the front doors of the museum. All she could do was smile, and that smile played across her face the entire rest of the night.


	4. Beyond the Sea - Silent Night

_(It was brought to my attention that Mulder was in fact shot in the leg in the episode... so I'm gonna say I took creative liberty here and changed the injury... XD)_

**4\. Beyond the Sea - Silent Night**

Mulder couldn't sleep. He was glad to be able to rest at home now, after being released from the hospital yesterday afternoon. His entire torso hurt, the residual soreness from the wound flaring up at night as he tried to get some rest.

He thought about calling Scully and checked his clock: 2:42 am. He knew she'd still be up. She had told him she wanted to be alone for a while, the Boggs case and her father's passing taking a toll on her. She didn't admit to the latter part, but he knew it to be true. Mulder couldn't blame her for it, but he couldn't help worrying about her being alone right now.

Mulder also knew that if he called her, she would immediately worry about his injury and about how he was recovering. She would feel the need to come over, at this time of night, to make sure he was okay. Though he would love nothing more than that, more so to make sure _she_ was okay, he wasn't sure how he felt about using his current injury as a pretext to let him check up on her.

Turning over on the couch, grunting in pain from the effort, he grabbed the phone and dialed her number. His thumb hovered over the call button as he made up his mind about what to do. _She said she needs space. Who am I to intrude on that… but then again, I just want to make sure she's alright. That's what friends are for…_

A loud shrill broke the silence in the room and Mulder dropped the ringing phone onto the floor. _Jesus._ Pulling receiver up to his ear, he mumbled a quick "Hello?"

"Mulder, it's me."

"Oh, hey Scully. Isn't it a little late to be making phone calls?"

"Did I wake you?"

"Absolutely not." Mulder smiled, the familiar warmth spreading across his body from hearing his favorite voice. "I couldn't sleep."

"Me either…" She replied softly, her slow breaths filling the silence between her words. It took a few beats for Scully to remember herself. "Wait, Mulder. Was the pain keeping you up? How are you doing?"

Mulder could hear a rustling of bed sheets - Scully was getting up. "Oh, I'm fine. In some pain, but I have the meds the doctors gave me for that." He really didn't want her to worry. "I'm fine, though. Thanks for asking."

"Yeah, okay."

There was a pause, silence over the phone line.

"So, what's up?" Mulder finally asked.

"Hm?"

"Scully, you called me. Figured something was on your mind if you're calling at three in the morning."

"Um." _Shit, she couldn't very well tell him that she knew talking to him would make her feel better. Calling at this time of night totally sounded like a great idea. _"I just... wanted to make sure your bandages were okay..."

"I think they're fine, Scully." He pulled his shirt collar to look down at this chest. The bandages looked the same as they had when they last put them on. "You were the one who made sure they put them on right at the hospital." He smiled at the memory of Scully observing every move the nurses made, much to their chagrin.

"Yes Mulder, but I'm just worried about it getting infected or you straining the wound." She was already dressing, the decision was made that she couldn't be in her house any longer that night. Before he could answer, she added - "I'm coming over to check."

"Okay." Mulder didn't argue and didn't have time to, as the call disconnected.

Scully breezed through her living room to reach her front door, not wanting to spend any more time in the room than necessary. She had been avoiding it as much as possible since the end of the case. She didn't want to think about what she thought she saw there a few days ago. The truth of her words to Mulder in his hospital room echoed in her head. _I'm afraid to believe. _

The cool winter felt like a welcome release as it brought a chill through her body. She didn't rush to her car, as she usually would in this weather. At this hour, the whole city seemed completely at a standstill. She stood in the night out under the lamplight with her eyes closed for a few minutes. It was the most at peace she had felt in the last few days.

Mulder heard the soft knocks on the door from the kitchen. He put the kettle on for some tea and walked over to open the door. He hadn't ever really seen Scully in casual clothing before and he proceeded to store the sight away in his mental box of favorite things. She had no makeup on, her hair was wavy from a shower and pulled up into a ponytail - stubborn wisps falling out of it. She was wearing an oversized University of Maryland hoodie and tight, black running pants. He couldn't help smiling at the tops of the blue fuzzy socks he saw peeking out of her tennis shoes. She looked so soft, cozy, _perfect._

"Come in. I'm making some tea." He closed the door behind her as she stepped in, heading back towards the kitchen. He turned the burner off as the kettle whistled and went to reach for some mugs in the cupboard. Forgetting his injury he reached up quickly, immediately freezing from the sharp pain he felt in his chest. A muttered "fuck" slipped out as he lowered his hands and braced himself on the counter.

"Never thought I'd see the day where I'd have to ask _you_ to reach something for me, Scully," Mulder said with a pained, sideways grin.

"Laugh it up, Mulder." She replied, grabbing the mugs and serving the hot water. "You know, you really shouldn't be exerting yourself like this while you're recovering."

"I'm fine, doc. Just forgot that I can't… you know, move... without feeling any pain." He slumped down into the chair, wincing slightly.

Scully handed him his tea with honey _and _sugar, just how he liked it. They settled into a comfortable silence as they drank the warm beverage. It didn't necessarily feel like an occasion to exchange small talk.

It wasn't lost on either partner that these silences, which would normally feel awkward or forced for just about anyone else, felt perfectly organic between them. They never stopped to acknowledge their closeness, but they knew it was there and in moments like these, really appreciated it.

So when Scully got up out of her chair and approached Mulder, he didn't think twice about it. "Let me check that. Don't want it to get infected."

She lifted his shirt carefully, trying not to have Mulder make any sudden movements. He was trying his best to hold back on expressing his discomfort, but it hurt like hell and Scully could tell. She unwrapped, cleaned, and dressed the wound again as efficiently as she could.

Scully washed their mugs and set them out to dry. Realizing she didn't have a pressing reason to stay, she figured she'd had to say goodnight and head back home. _Please ask me to stay. _

"Hey Scully, I know it's late and all… but do you want to watch a movie or something?" Mulder asked hopefully. He had an inkling that she didn't want to go home as much as he didn't want her to leave.

Wiping her hands on the dishtowel she gave him a grateful smile. "Only if you let me pick what we're watching."

Mulder laughed and nodded, leading them back into the living room. Mulder took one end of the couch, while Scully browsed his _normal_ tape collection. Her eyes landed on _The Goonies_ and figured that worked just fine for the occasion. After putting the tape in, she came back to sit on the floor in front of the couch. She knew Mulder spent most nights on said couch and didn't want to put him out of his sleeping space - especially now while he was injured.

"You know you can sit on the couch, Scully. I don't have cooties..."

She tipped her neck back to look at him. "Mulder you need to rest. I'm alright down here."

"You're not gonna sit on the ground the whole night." _Ridiculous. _

"It's fine really, I don't mind." She turned back to the TV, trying to signal the end of her effort to go back and forth on the matter.

"Scully, please just sit on the couch. There's more than enough room for both of us." He patted the couch cushions earnestly. He wasn't going to give up on this that easily.

Sighing, Scully realized he'd never relent. She shifted up to sit on the other end of the couch. "Fine." She pulled one of his pillows on her lap and instructed him to lay down. "But, if I'm staying here you're getting rest. Lay down."

Mulder knew not to argue when her doctor voice came out. He set his head down on the pillow on her lap gingerly, but as he shifted to pull up the blanket by his feet he grimaced at the shooting pain.

Scully saw his movement and her hand immediately darted down to his forehead, brushing his hair back tenderly in an attempt to provide some comfort. "Let me." Reaching over him, she helped him pull the blanket to cover him.

"Thanks, Scully." He looked up at her momentarily, instant comfort emanating from her presence. She smiled down at him and leaned her head up against the backrest. Unknowingly, they were both reflecting on how much better they felt in moments like these. Something about this unexplainable connection allowed them to draw strength from one another, on these silent nights. This was something they would come to depend on in the years to come.

As the movie played on, Scully found herself mindlessly running her fingers through Mulder's hair. Her mother used to always do that to comfort her when she got sick as a child. It was something so normal, so tender and so much like home, that she didn't think it odd for her to do the same to Mulder. From his steady breaths and lack of protestation, she figured he wasn't weirded out by it.

She looked down at her partner again, wondering if he was simply engrossed in the film or just not feeling very talkative. Usually, he'd comment on whatever was happening on-screen unless he got sucked in by the plot. Scully saw, though, that Mulder was fast asleep. She couldn't help but smile. He looked so at peace, something somewhat rare for them these past few weeks. She debated internally on what she'd do when the movie was over. She could stay, though she'd never spent the night in his apartment and wasn't quite sure how she felt about crossing that boundary. She didn't want to wake him if she tried to move now, surely he had just dozed off a few minutes ago.

She found herself slowly dozing off, as she attempted to formulate her plan of action. He was so warm, she was surprisingly pretty comfortable, and her body felt heavy. Maybe she'd just stay a little while longer…

Scully woke up what must have been an hour or two later, her hand still entangled in Mulder's hair. She saw the sun was just starting to come up outside. She moved slowly, pulling herself out from under Mulder carefully and putting him back down as gently as she could. She knew he needed the rest and didn't want to disrupt what seemed like the only deep sleep he'd gotten in a while. Re-tucking him in, she left his apartment as quietly as she came.

Mulder stirred awake as the light of morning bathed his face. It took him a moment to shake off the drowsiness, a feeling he wasn't used to. As he lay on the couch, the memory of last night came flooding back. _That explains the Scully smell lingering on his couch. _He breathed in deeply, ever grateful that his partner was practically the best smelling human on the planet. _Though he'd never tell her that. _

As he moved to sit up, something caught his eye. He felt warmth cover his body, a foreign happiness engulfing him as he understood the meaning of what he was seeing. On his coffee table, Scully had left a glass of water, his pain pills, and a note that simply read "_thank you." _


End file.
